"We've been discussing this (car-sharing service) for a while now," said David Jukins of the CDTC, which oversees transportation planning and policy in the area.

The CDTC launched a study six months ago to see whether the region could support such a service. The research, now nearly complete, will be presented at the Tuesday meeting.

Car-sharing services offer their members access to vehicles that can be rented for hours or even days, catering to those who need a car only occasionally.

The hourly and mileage fees members pay cover gas, insurance and maintenance costs. So far, the service is found in major cities and on college campuses.

Hertz On Demand, a self-service car rental program, currently provides cars to students at two area colleges, the University at Albany and The College of Saint Rose, said Karl Luntta, UAlbany's media relations director.

"We are hoping ... they begin to use this as an alternative to parking on campus," said Luntta, which would also ease demand for parking spaces.

The best-known car-sharing service is Zipcar, based in Cambridge, Mass. It has more than 700,000 members and 9,000 vehicles in cities and on college campuses nationwide.

The service, which comes as close to the Capital Region as Williams College in Williamstown, says it has no plans to expand over the state border to this area.